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Many poker players in Las Vegas are breathing a sigh of relief...and fresh air. In a much herald decision the two biggest poker rooms have announced that they will now be smoke free. The Mirage and Bellagio have banned smoking anywhere within the card rooms. The Mirage even banned smoking from the adjacent keno lounge. A majority of players have praised the news and many felt it was long overdue.
In most areas of gaming Las Vegas has always been the leader but with the issue of smoking in the poker rooms they have lagged behind both the East and West Coast card rooms. California has strict laws banning smoking in many public places as well as the card rooms. In New Jersey the biggest poker rooms at the Taj Mahal and Tropicana have had a no smoking policy in place for quite some time. A year ago in May, both Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun made a joint decision to simultaneously ban smoking in the Connecticut card rooms. Foxwoods extended the ban to all of their tournaments as well, including last years World Poker Finals and all weekly events. This was well received by the majority of tournament players.
There has been an outcry for a smoking ban in major tournaments for several years. It was announced that the World Series of Poker would go smoke free next year. More tournaments will more than likely follow suit. Some players have stayed away from events because of the smoking issue.
Many casinos have started taking steps to accommodate both smokers and non-smokers alike. I recently wrote that Mohegan Sun opened a smoke free slot casino and many other casinos have also made non-smoking areas available for players. But the smoking issue in a card room presents some additional problems. In tournaments you are assigned a seat and can not move if the player next to you lights up. This can cause a physical distraction for the non-smoker and may give the smoker an unfair advantage. Even in a side game it is not always easy to change your set in a poker room. There may be only one game at the limit you wish to play or an extremely long waiting list for available seating.
Many of the other Las Vegas poker rooms are taking a wait and see attitude before deciding to go smoke free or not. Many players have spoken out against smoking. They now have the opportunity to make their voices heard louder by playing in the rooms that have a smoke free policy. If business drops off at the poker rooms that allow smoking you can be management will take a look at the smoke free alternative.
Until next time,
remember:
"Luck comes and goes...Knowledge stays forever."